MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
CHARLOTTE MOTOR SPEEDWAY ROAD COURSE
BANK OF AMERICA ROVAL 400
TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
SEPTEMBER 27, 2019
KURT BUSCH, NO. 1 MONSTER ENERGY CAMARO ZL1, Media Breakout Session Highlights:
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“We are a certain amount of points behind, but we can pick those up in the stages. Yet, at the end of the race, the most important part is still finishing strong. It’s a matter of getting away from bad luck that has been these last couple of races, with a fender rub and a yellow came out when a back marker hit the leader and we had just pitted. So, we got trapped two laps down. We’ll see how it plays out.”
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE NEW CHICANE?
“It’s super slow, but that’s what they wanted to do was to create a big, heavy braking zone similar to the one on the front straightaway to create some action.”
DO YOU FIND IT A CHALLENGE?
“It’s just part of the series; it’s a race, there’s points and it’s a road course race so it’s fun and different. Again, it just feels like there’s such a combination of tire and car grip level. That’s why you see a lot of guys having trouble in practice. It was in spots that we are familiar with, so to me, it’s still like a tire combination and cars just aren’t quite planted in the asphalt yet.”
HOW WAS YOUR PRACTICE?
“I was just sliding around and trying to make sure we would find the right amount of speed today for qualifying. At the other two road courses, we practiced all day on Friday and qualified on Saturday. So, this one is in reverse and it puts more urgency on everything.”
IS IT FRUSTRATING TO BE WHERE YOU’RE AT WHEN YOU HAD A REALLY STRONG REGULAR SEASON AND TWO RACES WITH BAD LUCK AT THE START OF THE PLAYOFFS?
“It’s part of the Playoffs, it’s what happens.”
ARE YOU CLOSE ON AN EXTENSION WITH YOUR CONTRACT?
“We haven’t really started talks. I felt like it was good to get the Playoffs underway and go as far as we could comfortably. Man, there’s a lot going on and we’ll see how things play out.”
“Again, it’s all about all the starts lining up with Chevrolet, Monster Energy, myself, Chip (Ganassi). For me, I feel like things haven’t progressed because of the focus on the Playoffs.”
IS THE BACK CHICANE NOW A PASSING ZONE?
“It will be how you get out of Turn 8 and onto the oval. If you’re close enough to try to out brake somebody, the risk versus reward is still there.”
HOW MUCH FUN DID YOU HAVE AT THE HALL OF FAME THIS WEEK?
“It was great to support the NASCAR Foundation and give your trust into ropes, people and equipment. Leaning back and trusting that equipment (laughs). Ultimately, my fans on social media, I told them if they raised over $1,000, I would meet it at $1,000. So, we were able to donate $2,100 to the NASCAR Foundation from propelling off of a 10-story building.”
I KNOW YOU SAID NOTHING IS DONE FOR NEXT YEAR YET, BUT YOU SEEM TO BE HAVING A GREAT TIME THIS YEAR RUNNING WITH CHIP (GANASSI) AND THE TEAM.
“Yeah, things have been fun. We’ve exceeded expectations in quite a few areas and again, we’ll get into talks when we need to. Right now, the Playoffs are the most important part.”
WHAT IS THE CHALLENGE LIKE WITH THIS NEW CAR GOING TO A PLACE LIKE DOVER? IS IT KIND OF CRAZY?
“Yeah, it’s crazy how the track changes with the rubber buildup too. I remember we were super-fast in practice when we were at Dover earlier in the year and then as the race pace sets in and track rubbers in, these cars seem effected way more than what the old cars were. So, that dirty air really comes into play.”
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“You have to focus on the car to steer center of the corner to the exit. That rear steer thing that is so important that cars usually fail inspection on, that’s what you’re focusing on in trying to get the car to steer from the rear.”
Team Chevy high-resolution racing photos are available for editorial use.
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